Crazy Night of Cards
Posted on April 6, 2014 by Ching under Events.
We finally broke into our Bigger Blacker Box set the other day. It’s the complete set with the base Cards Against Humanity
It actually worked out because we had several friends over on Friday night. We had more people than could fit in one table. So we actually had to use both sets. We had so many people here to play CAH that a third game actually broke out. Thankfully, Hideki and Andrea brought their set over so the third group used that deck. Hideki bought the Holiday Bullshit last year too so their set had all the HB cards as well.
Here’s a picture of first table without Faith because she was singing karaoke downstairs at first. Also not in the photo is Misty, who opted to be a spectator.
Misty played vicariously through Tammie.
Here’s another picture of table one after Faith joined in. You can see the back of her head here in the lower right corner.
Here are the folks at table two.
They look so serious in this photo, you’d think they were playing poker or something. LOL. But don’t let the picture fool you. This was the loud table.
While I was trying to figure out where to put the third group, our smart friends figured it out for themselves. The ottoman turned into a makeshift table and our house turned into CAH central for the evening.
Misty wasn’t the only non-player, though. Jake, Christina, and Joel didn’t want to play either. They preferred to have an orgy in one of our spare bedrooms. Okay, so it’s technically just a threesome. I’m kidding! I’m kidding! I don’t think anything sexual happened (that I know of anyway).
Most people left around 11-ish. After everyone left, we had enough people for one more game to we played until it was safe enough for people to drive home. Brian made coffee, which went really well with the red velvet mini cupcakes that Carla brought over. Darcy won our last game. I’m thinking beginner’s luck. That or she was cheating by colluding with other players. LOL.
By 30 after 2 am everyone had left and we were by ourselves. Brian wanted to just go to bed, but I managed to talk him into helping me pick up a little bit. I can’t sleep when the kitchen is super messy and there’s open food containers laying about. I feel like it’s going to attract gremlins who will have a food fight while we’re asleep and then there’ll be a bigger mess for us to clean up in the morning.
By the way, the funniest part of Friday night to me is that neither Brian nor I recognized Jake (Christina’s friend who we met for the first time the previous weekend). Brian was like, “Do you know who that guy is in the yellow with glasses?” He was pointing at Jake who looked like he was making a plate or checking out the food in the kitchen. “No,” I replied. “We need to figure out who he belongs to,” Brian concluded a bit concerned. I wasn’t worried. I was sure he belonged to someone; otherwise he wouldn’t have been here. A little bit later we realized who he was and all was right with the world again. Brian, who is overly cautious and paranoid at times, was able to resume being his relaxed self. LOL.
Anyway, our friend Jay always says that the sign of a good party is when you meet people you’ve never met before. Or, when you see people at the party that you haven’t seen in years. Both then to happen a lot around here. Overall, I think it was a success. The only disappointment for me is that I forgot to ask everyone about couples dodgeball! Ugh.
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Certificate of Appreciation
Posted on April 6, 2014 by Ching under News, Things to Do.
Check it out! They received my donation!
I’m thinking that I’ll just grow my hair out and donate it every five years or so. I have an endless supply of hair so I can just keep producing it and then donate it to Locks of Love whenever it gets long enough that way those who are in need of hair can get use out of it. Yup. That’s exactly what I’m going to do.
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I Have Short Hair
Posted on March 22, 2014 by Ching under Life, Things to Do.
I have short hair for the first time in years!
Brian packed up my hair and we’re sending it to Locks of Love. I’m not sure that it’s long enough. Brian says it is. I hope they are able to use it. If not, I suppose it’s the thought that counts. Right?
Additional info regarding Locks of Love:
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Social Media Spotlight
Posted on March 22, 2014 by Ching under Confessions.
About a month ago Corporate Communications sent me twenty questions to answer for a social media spotlight on our company Facebook page. Only a few of the questions made the cut so I’m posting all of the questions and answers on here for your reading enjoyment.
When did you start working here? I started working for the company on May 2002.
Briefly, what jobs have you had with the company? I have always worked in the Customer Relations Center (CRC) and see myself as a customer advocate. I started as a Customer Service Representative (CSR) in back then what was called the phone center. Two and a half years later I became supervisor of our team. When we reorganized in late 2009, I took on the role of Quality Assurance Manager. In 2011 we combined Training and Quality Assurance and that’s when I became Manager, Quality Assurance and Training, which is the position I hold today.
What would people never guess you do in your role? The one thing that people would probably never guess I do in my role is have fun. Most think of Quality Assurance work as monotonous and boring. It can be but I find it extremely rewarding. We don’t just evaluate service interactions for compliance. We also listen to catch people doing things right and we celebrate these successes. I find my job fulfilling and fun because I work with the most amazing group of people. They make it fun.
Tell us about your family (if you’re married, who’s your spouse, how did you meet, how long have you been married, your kids and their ages). My husband’s name is Brian. We met over 15 years ago and have been inseparable ever since. We were married on August 2002. I’m grateful to Brian for being supportive of all my goals and aspirations, specifically all the years I spent attending Wichita State for undergrad and grad school. He inspires me to be the best version of me that I can be and I’d like to think that I have the same effect on him. We do not have any children.
What is your favorite childhood memory? I will always have fond memories of the summers that my sister and I spent in my grandmother’s village. We lived in Las Pinas which is located in the island of Luzon in the Philippines. It’s the main island. As soon as the school session was over, we would ride the ship to the island of Negros. We couldn’t afford to go by plane. Once there my days were spent playing outside, swimming in the river, celebrating town fiestas, attending street dances, etc. The time I spent staying with my grandmother is how I learned to speak the local dialect Cebuano which I can still speak today. The primary language in Las Pinas is Tagalog, which I also speak.
What life dream is still out there waiting for you? I dream of traveling the world someday and being able to speak other languages (specifically Spanish) fluently.
At what time do you feel like work is the perfect place to be? This is true every day. I see myself as a customer experience advocate and in that sense I feel like I’m exactly where I’m supposed to be.
Where is the place you feel most at peace? I’m most at peace at home with Brian.
What are your hobbies or interests outside of work? I teach Zumba for the YMCA and Wichita Parks and Recreation in my spare time. I love Zumba because it’s the only kind of exercise I know that actually makes people happy. Everyone has a smile on their face in every Zumba class I’ve ever taught or attended. Zumba is so positive and uplifting that it brings me great joy to be able to share it with others. I feel like I’m making a difference in their day even for only an hour. I know it makes a huge difference in mine. I always feel better after Zumba class.
What’s one thing people are surprised to learn about you? People are most surprised to learn that I enjoy playing poker. Since I’m very expressive so people don’t think I can bluff, much less keep a straight face when I have a great hand. Texas hold ‘em is one of my favorite activities, second only to Zumba.
Five things you personally like: I like staying busy, learning new things, traveling, connecting with people, and achieving goals (personal and professional).
Three things you don’t like: I dislike being around grouchy, negative people; gaining weight; and being sick.
If you could spend one day with any contemporary person or person from history, who would that be? Why? I’d pick Sheryl Sandberg because I was captivated by her TED talk and I really enjoyed reading her book which my mentor gave over a year ago. I find her ideas inspirational and see her as a great role model. Within the organization, I’d pick Doug Sterbenz. In the 12 years I’ve watched him grow as a leader and speaker. I would love the opportunity to shadow/observe him for a day and find out how he got to be such an eloquent public speaker.
What are three things you cannot live without? Internet, my phone, and music. Having an internet connection was actually a condition of my moving in with Brian fifteen years ago. I wasn’t about to move to a place without internet.
What is your biggest pet peeve? There are things that drive me crazy but I don’t have a major pet peeve because I’m generally pretty tolerant (or so I’d like to think).
What is your favorite movie of all time? It’s hard to pick just one. I really enjoyed Pitch Perfect
If you could be a superhero, what would you want your superpowers to be? The superpower that I’d want to have is multiplicity. I want to do so many things and there’s just not enough time in the day to do them all. Sometimes I want to do things that are happening simultaneously and I can only pick one event or activity because there’s only one of me.
What is your favorite quote? “It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye.” That’s a quote from my all time favorite children’s book, The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint Exupery.
What was the most interesting job you’ve had? I’ve only worked for one other company besides here so I don’t really have an answer for this one. I worked at Spiegel (catalog) for almost 7 years before the call center in Wichita closed its doors. I held various positions there including customer sales associate (front line), customer satisfaction specialist/help desk, OJT trainer/helper, lead sales associate, team lead/coach, interim supervisor – none of these are really exotic or interesting.
If you could buy any one thing, with price being no object, what would it be? A trip to space. That is the one thing in this world that my husband wants to do and if money were no object I’d want to help him fulfill that dream.
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My Stella & Dot Launch Party
Posted on March 22, 2014 by Ching under Projects, Shopping.
About a month ago I decided to embark on my first MLM business. Brian was completely against it because he grew up watching his mom try several of these ventures (Avon, Mary Kay, etc.) with limited or no success. He didn’t want to see me throw money at some new project only to watch me fail at it months later. Plus, he has this perception that all MLM businesses are pyramid schemes.
My friend Darcy at work kind of holds the same views. When I was telling her about it — and I can’t help but get excited because the products (jewelry, bags, scarves, etc.) are amazing — she just shook her head with disapproval. I got to the part where I was telling her how I have the opportunity to make even more money when other “stylists” (as we are called) sign up underneath me. She was like, “So it is like a pyramid scheme!” While there is a sort of pyramid structure that naturally happens when new stylists sign up under you and other stylists sign up under them, the term “pyramid scheme” just sounds so negative. It implies that there is little to no added value in the endeavor when in fact there is. I absolutely love Stella & Dot jewelry. The quality of the items are better than most name brand products and their customer service is out of this world. Seriously. I am always delighted to contact them.
Anyway, Isaac has his photo booth business. Carmen has her Origami Owl business. Now I have Stella & Dot so I’m feeling all entrepreneurial. LOL.
I didn’t really expect much out of this new venture. I decided to become a stylist mostly because I love the jewelry and wanted to be able to purchase them at half off. It’s a lot like how I got started with Zumba really. A couple of years ago I became a ZIN (Zumba Instructor Network) member just to get discounts on Zumba gear and also to get Zumba music. I originally had no intention of actually teaching Zumba. An opportunity to teach Zumba for the city of Wichita came up and I took on the the challenge a few weeks after getting my Zumba license. It helped me cover my monthly ZIN costs. It didn’t cover the money I was spending on workout clothes, shoes, and other Zumba gear or other expenses (such as conventions and conferences) but in my mind I’m actually saving money because I would buy these things anyway. As a ZIN I’m actually getting them at a discounted rate. Fast forward to today… I teach Zumba for the Greater Wichita YMCA (I gave up my class at Evergreen Recreation Center for several reasons but the biggest reason is that it’s just too far of a drive; however, I can still sub for the city whenever someone needs me to fill in). I would never have realized that I had a talent for teaching Zumba classes and a passion for bringing people a joyful and enjoyable workout had it not been for my Zumba gear shopping problem. Sometimes things just end up working out the way they’re supposed to…
But I digress… Brian and Darcy’s perspective that I somehow got roped into some kind of pyramid scheme wasn’t very uplifting so I really had no expectations whatsoever with this whole Stella & Dot business. I was quite shocked at the success of my launch party. I earned hundreds of dollars of free jewelry just from the trunk show orders and I still have a few more orders trickling in from work.
I was so worried that no one would show up for my launch party trunk show. I had attended several parties of all kinds in the past for various friends but I’d never had the desire to host a party of my own because I was always worried that no one would show up. I didn’t want to be the loser who had two friends at her party. I wasn’t even concerned about making any sales. I just needed bodies.
I had a few cancellations the day of the party so I was a bit nervous. Brian, the supportive husband that he is, offered to cater my event. I asked him not to make so much food because I was worried that I wouldn’t have any guests to feed. My friend Misty who was initially calling to cancel because she hurt her ankle the day before could sense my concern over the phone. She actually came over despite her injury. Not only that, she actually placed an order. God bless her!
Brian is convinced that the reason my launch party did so well is because of his food. I guess since people knew he was making food they decided it was worth the trip. LOL.
Seriously though, I have the most amazing friends. The launch party wouldn’t have been a success without them. And, I can’t believe I got all of those orders. They added up really quickly and got me awesome hostess rewards such as 50% OFF four times in addition to over $250 of free jewelry. My sponsor/upline Amanda was impressed.
I actually credit Amanda for the success of my party also. Because of a fiasco with USPS, who delivered my package to the wrong address, I hardly had any samples to display. Thankfully Amanda brought all of her beautiful jewelry.
Check out her display compared to mine below.
I’m so glad Amanda talked me into hosting a launch party. Between Brian’s delicious catering, Amanda’s wonderful trunk show display/presentation, and my awesome friends my Stella & Dot business is off to a great start!
BTW, shipping is so fast that everyone who ordered during the launch party (except for Kate because the earrings she picked were so popular that they’re on backorder) received their items on Thursday.
By Friday Faith and I were sporting our Stella & Dot jewelry.
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